Snob houses closed, only half occupied (8)
I believe the answer is:
obsessed
'occupied' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'snob houses closed only half' is the wordplay.
'snob houses' becomes 'obs' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'closed' becomes 'compressed' ('compressed' can be similar in meaning to 'closed').
'only half' indicates taking half.
'compressed' with half the letters taken is 'essed'.
'obs'+'essed'='OBSESSED'
(Other definitions for obsessed that I've seen before include "Showing excessive or compulsive concern with something" , "Being excessively concerned with something" , "Excessively preoccupied" , "Fanatical" , "Persistently preoccupied" .)